Taking in the Truth
by EverAfterGirl
Summary: The revelation your son is half ghost can be a lot for a family to get used to.
1. Chapter 1

**Not sure where this came from or if I'm going to continue it. Would love to know what you think!**

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The whole thing had been Jazz's idea. It was wild, outlandish and the very thought of it made Danny incredibly uncomfortable, but he had to admit that it made sense.

It had been a crazy week, and just thinking about the events had unfolded was exhausting for the halfa. Just seven days before, life was so much simpler and easy to navigate. Now, it was as if the very ground beneath him had shifted and life was unrecognizable.

On Sunday morning, he had woken up to his usual routine of sneaking away to take care of the Box Ghost _yet again_. He'd returned shortly after, just in time for the Fenton family breakfast. Luckily, this time none of the food had ecto-contamination so he didn't have to fight back against the meal for once.

Sam was out of town for a Manson family reunion in some ritzy location he'd already forgotten the name of, and Tucker was occupied with a group project. That left him with no plans for the day, which was an odd position to be in. He couldn't remember the last time he hadn't been busy, and he couldn't shake the lingering feeling that he should be doing something with the time.

When his dad asked him to help out in the lab for the afternoon, he didn't have a good excuse to get out of it. So he found himself dressed in an unfortunate orange hazmat suit passing tools to his father as worked on the latest invention. An invention that Danny wished he could sabotage, right then and there to save himself the trouble it was sure to cause his ghost half later.

What he hadn't been counting on was the troubles the lab posed for his human half. A bit clumsiness coupled with his father's inability to put sharp objects away had led to an incident where his hand was impaled with a scalpel sitting in the countertop. He'd been so surprised by the pain, his eyes had betrayed his other self and Jack Fenton had noticed.

Now, Jack Fenton was not the brightest man around, but he wasn't a complete fool. His son's accident had been strange on several levels. The boy hadn't made a sound when the sharp object went straight through his hand, not even a grunt of pain. The only sound that clued him into realizing anything had happened at all was the sound of the bottom of the scalpel scraping the lab countertop.

Then there were the eyes. His son's blue eyes were distinctive, so when he met a set of bright green eyes he was startled. His first thought had been fear that his son was being overshadowed. This fear was squashed when he noticed the blood running from Danny's wound. Red and glowing green oozed from the opening in a shocking display. Jack knew that when a human is overshadowed, the chemistry of the body does not change. Something in his gut twisted as he tried to comprehend what this strange wound could mean.

Danny hadn't noticed his father's focus on the blood, instead letting out a belated yelp that sounded almost forced and pulling the tool out of the wound. He made a move to sink but Jack stopped him.

When confronted about the blood, Danny grew visibly nervous. Jack could've sworn there was something akin to guilt in his eyes. It was then that Maddie entered the lab, having returned from her weekly trip to the grocery store. She entered the lab, taking in the scene with confusion.

Jack brought the wound to her attention, while Danny cradled it in his other hand. When Maddie went to pull his hand away, Jack almost fainted. The wound was gone.

Bits of dried and drying blood and ectoplasm coated his hands, but there was no hole or open wound. Jack had personally witnessed Danny remove the scalpel from his hand and could not wrap his head around what this all meant.

There was a period of awkward silence before Danny had looked down at his shoes and admitted he had something to tell his parents. They'd been relieved to hear it, as Danny had grown distant over the past few years. They'd shared many conversations debating his secret could possibly be. It appeared they might finally be getting the answers they sought. They just hoped it wasn't drugs.

He'd sat them down at the living room and asked them to remove all their ecto-weapons. They'd thought it was a ridiculous request, but they'd complied simply to figure out what had driven their son away. Danny had collected all the weapons and dumped them in the room next door. He'd yelled for Jazz to come down from her room.

Jazz was a lot of things, but most of all she protective of her family. Taking in the scene as she entered the room, she hurried to her brothers side.

"Are you going to tell them?" She'd asked.

He'd nodded and Jazz had asked what he wanted her to do. He told her to guard the weapons, so she placed herself firmly in front of the doorway, eyeing her parents warily.

To say Jack and Maddie Fenton were shocked to learn their son walked the line of death and life was understatement. To find out their only son doubled as the massively powerful ghost they'd hunted on multiple occasions was stupefying. Yet they couldn't deny what their eyes had seen as he transformed.

He'd transformed back after a matter of minutes, before approaching them with fear in his eyes. He apologized for not telling them, as they sat their silently absorbing the information. Danny had his mother take his pulse to show how weak his heartbeat was and offered to get the thermometer to show his body temperature level. He was trying to appeal to the scientist in them, to show that it was a condition, not a curse.

He'd looked so desperate, standing there waiting for their judgement. Jazz had screeched at them to say something. It took some time and some prodding, but eventually they regained their words. They had questions. Danny had expected that. He answered to the best of his ability, while retreating from where they sat.

What felt like an eternity later, his father stood and approached him. He crouched in front of his son so that they could look eye to eye and he reassured Danny that he loved him. This seemed to spur Maddie out of her state of shock and she joined him. She pulled Danny into a hesitant hug and echoed Jack's words.

It had been such a relief to feel accepted, it had brought Danny to tears. Seeing this reaction took the revelation to new level for his parents. It finally hit them how difficult this must have been for their son to share, especially considering their role in hunting Danny Phantom. The level of trauma they had inflicted on their own child was striking.

In this moment, the dynamic in the room shifted. They realized how desperately he needed their reassurance and this dismissed finally their fears about his ghost half. Clearly this was still their son, despite everything that had happened in the past few years. They'd took upon themselves to repeat their promises of love to him and spend the rest of the evening with him and Jazz.

Monday came and Jazz took Danny to school. They saw him briefly at dinner and then he'd left to meet Tucker. They avoided the subject of Phantom and ghosts in general entirely in conversation that day. If Danny noticed, he didn't say anything.

The rest of the week passed similarly. His parents made sure to pay him attention while he was home, but they danced around the subject of Phantom. Danny did not go ghost around them, still nervous their attitudes would change.

He had noticed, however, that the 'public enemy number one' flyers had been removed from the lab. When he fought ghosts, he no longer had to worry about his parents shooting at him. The one time they'd come across one of his fights, they'd used the GAV to fire at Technus and actually made their shot count. They'd driven away after, but not before his father had given him a brief nod from driver's seat. He'd given a small wave back, which had elicited an excited wave from his mother.

When Saturday rolled around, Jazz cornered Danny. She was perceptive and insisted that their parents needed to interact with Phantom more. She had noticed that Danny seemed self conscious about turning into his ghost half at home, even though his parents knew his secret.

"Don't think I haven't noticed how Phantom stays a good 50 feet up during fights this week," she'd said. "You don't want them to see your ghost half."

What she had said next had shocked him. "Mom and Dad are really making an effort to show you that they trust you, you should do the same."

It made sense, in a way. He was avoiding a face to face confrontation of Phantom and his parents. He couldn't shake the image from his mind of their faces when he'd transformed. That look haunted him. Yet, they hadn't given him any reason to not to trust them. Maybe they avoided the subject of Phantom because he avoided them.

Jazz's suggestion had been wild. He'd laughed at first, but she'd convinced him eventually.

She left the room and he transformed to his ghost self, before rummaging through his dresser drawers. He found a simple black T-shirt and a pair of dark wash jeans. He changed out of the hazmat suit and into the more casual ensemble before studying his reflection in the mirror.

He had to admit, without the spandex, he looked a lot less ghostly. His white hair looked like a punk fashion statement, and the glow wasn't that noticeable in the direct sunlight.

He grimaced as he eyed his reflection. This was going to be an incredibly awkward dinner, he decided before mustering up the courage to open his bedroom door. The smell of pizza drifted through the house as he made his way to the stairs.

His feet felt like lead as he trudged down the steps. Jazz passed him on the way down, giving him a quick squeeze and encouraging smile before slipping through the kitchen door and out of his line of sight.

"You can do this, Fenton." He whispered to himself. "You've taken on Pariah Dark, this is nothing." So why didn't he feel convinced?

It was now or never.

He entered the kitchen, forcing his face into a nonchalant expression. His father looked up from kitchen table, jerked in surprise and began reaching for a weapon on reflex. Danny tensed, but Jack had already had already relaxed his posture.

Maddie had just taken the pizza out of the oven and placed it on the stove. She turned around to grab plates, and noticed Danny. Her eyes widened but all she said was, "Hi, sweetie."

He smiled and took his place at the table, too tense to lean back in his seat.

Jazz was the one to speak, "Danny is going to be spending a lot of time in his ghost form around you guys so that everyone can get comfortable with it."

The three other members of the Fenton family gave tense nods of acknowledgement.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

"So," Maddie begun, feeling out of her element. "Can you... _eat_ as a ghost?"

It felt like a dumb question, but as her fingers ran over the stack of plates in her hands she realized just how little she knew about her son.

He looked alien to her, his radioactive green eyes shining like beacons as they met her own. His hair was certainly as messy as Danny's, but the stark negative of the color. Sure, the bone structure was the same, and his mannerisms matched up, but it was more eerie than reassuring.

He nodded, "Yeah, my body pretty much works the same in either form. Tastebuds are a little dulled with the whole 'dead' thing but, otherwise it's fine."

Maddie nodded, trying not to react to strongly to the reminder that her son was partly dead. She sliced up the pizza and set a plate in front of each of them before taking her place at the table. The silence was thunderous.

Danny was surprisingly the first to break the silence, "So what's everyone doing tomorrow?"

Jazz launched into her plans to visit the library check in on her college applications. It was such a typical Jazz response that it deflated some of the tension from the room.

"I can't say I have anything planned," Maddie spoke next. "I'm call your Aunt Alicia to see if she got her roof fixed after the storm hit, but that's it for me. Jack?"

Her Sunday plans usually revolved around going into the town and hunting ghosts. During the week, she and Jack spent time working on their inventions. The weekend was the ideal time for getting out in the field. Hunting ghosts now had a weird feeling of guilt attached to it, so she planned to take the weekend off.

Jack must have had similar thoughts, because he didn't bring up ghost hunting either. "Not a thing!"

All eyes turned to Danny and he squirmed under their gazes. He looked down at his plate, studying the pepperoni's on his pizza as if they were suddenly the most interesting thing in the world. "Jazz said she wanted to do some 'family bonding,' so I'm just hanging out here."

Jack lit up at his son's words. "Say, what about a Fenton family movie marathon? It's been ages since our last one!"

Jazz groaned. "Fine, but we're _not_ watching home movies this time. We're going to rent actual movies that have played in actual theaters."

Danny nodded his agreement. A movie marathon would be easy enough, he wouldn't have to contribute to the conversation much and his parents wouldn't be staring at him like a bug under a microscope the whole time. The way they seemed to be doing now.

"I think that's a great idea!" Maddie exclaimed, a smile lighting up her face. "And we can finish it off will Fenton family game night!"

Jazz rolled her eyes as her father jumped from his seat in excitement. The Fenton parents could be so competitive.

As Maddie and Jack debated which games they should play, Danny stood and carried his plate over to the sink.

"Oh Danny," his mother said, noticing his movement. "Don't worry about it, I'll clean up. Aren't you meeting Sam and Tucker?"

She collected the rest of the dishes and walked over to the sink, her hand brushing lightly against his arm as she passed him. She shuddered at the chill of his skin and dropped the dishes in front of her.

Danny reached out on reflex and caught all but one, which shattered on impact. He hurriedly placed them in the sink before returning his attention to his mother.

"Are you okay?" He asked, unsure what had come over her. Maddie Fenton was no klutz. He put a tentative hand on her shoulder to steady her, and froze when she cringed at his touch.

"Oh."

She could see the raw hurt on his face as comprehension dawned. He withdrew his hand quickly, as if burned and backed up a few steps. Her stomach knotted.

"Wait, Danny," she stepped forward and put a hand on his arm, forcing back a shiver of revulsion. "I'm sorry, it just startled me. You being so cold."

The pain in his green eyes subsided at her words, but not entirely. She realized this was going to be a very delicate situation. She pulled him into a tight hug before releasing him. "Have fun with your friends tonight, sweetie. I'll see you in the morning!"

He smiled and turned to go. She heard Jack walk over behind her, before he placed his hand on her shoulder. They watched their son walk out the front door in silence. A second later, they spotted him - a speck in the sky disappearing into the distance. That was going to take some getting used to.

"Hmmm…" Jazz murmured, writing something down on her notepad.

The parents exchanged a look before Jack asked, "What is it?"

She gave them a look as if she wasn't sure if she should respond before shaking her head and explaining. "Danny never uses the front door. He always just phases through the wall. Clearly he's not comfortable using powers in front of you guys yet." She sighed. "We're gonna have to work on that, but at least he's facing you as Phantom."

Maddie was puzzled. Had Danny been purposefully avoiding them as Phantom? She had noticed that his ghost counterpart was less visible this past week, but she hadn't thought much of it. She'd assumed there were just less ghosts for him to fight.

"Jazz," she said. "Was it your idea for your brother to be in ghost mode at home?" She was careful to keep her tone neutral.

Her daughter replied with a 'yes,' before launching into her reasoning for the idea. "If he can't get comfortable with being himself in front of his own parents, he'll never really accept what he is. This is crucial for his psyche."

With that, the eldest Fenton child excused herself and went to her room, leaving her parents standing in the kitchen lost in thought.

The next day started like any other Sunday. Danny woke early, went ghost, stuffed the Box Ghost in the thermos, and returned to his room. This was where his normal routine ended. He didn't revert to human form. Instead, he found himself selecting another black T-shirt and jeans to change into. He kicked his boots off and headed barefoot to the stairs.

His family was already at the kitchen table, enjoying breakfast. When his mother spotted him in the doorway, she motioned for him to sit down and join. Unlike the stress of the dinner before, this meal almost felt...normal.

They discussed the movie options they had on hand, and Danny was thrilled when his suggestion of the latest Dead Teacher film was accepted. They took their usual places in the living room as Jack pulled the curtains across the window to block out the light.

As soon as the room was dark, however, the feeling of normalcy was shattered. Danny groaned as he realized how much he was glowing in the dark space. "Sorry," he mumbled, as eyes turned to him. He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.

Maddie found a genuine smile cross her lips. The gesture was just so...Danny. As small as it was, she felt the most at peace with the idea that Danny Phantom and her son were one and the same in that moment.

Jazz muttered something that sounded like 'glowstick' before Danny chucked a pillow at her head.

"No ecto-beams this time? Weak!" She called out.

Danny's eyes widened. "Er...I...I mean…"

Maddie's thoughts returned to their conversation about Danny not wanting to use powers in front of his parents. She had a sneaking suspicion her daughter was trying to force him to overcome this fear and normalize his powers.

Jack's eyes lit up at the idea of seeing ghost powers in action, but to his credit he said nothing. She knew it must be killing him to bite his tongue and not beg Danny for a full power demonstration. She was proud of her husband for holding back all of his questions. She knew what it was like to force the inner scientist down when confronted with the most interesting development in their field's history. Being a parent was simply more important.

"Who wants popcorn?" She asked, instead.

Danny raised his hand, happy for the change of subject.

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 **What do you think? I'm still not sure where I'm going with this story or how long it's gonna be. I'd love some feedback.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

The movie marathon passed by quickly, and soon Danny lost himself in the films. They were an easy distraction that somehow cleared the stress of the situation from his mind. All he could think about was how much Tucker was going to love the new movie and how right Sam had been in recommending it.

"Don't go in there!" He yelled at the screen as the protagonist made yet another dumb decision. He held a hand over his face, looking through the gaps in his fingers, poised to block his own view if necessary.

His mother's laughter drew his attention away from the screen and back to reality. She was watching him with an uncomfortable level of focus.

"Ummm…"

She explained, "It's just, I never thought I'd see Danny Phantom afraid of anything. Much less a movie."

Danny _Phantom_. He couldn't help the sinking feeling that accompanied her words. Was that all she saw now that she looked at him? Was he no longer just Danny?

He forced down the feelings of bitterness and gave her a weak smile. "Yeah, well, I don't like when things jump out at you. It's a little too close to home."

The second he said it, he realized the double meaning his choice of words could have. While he'd meant it as a reference to ghosts terrorizing his life, it also applied to his parents. His own family used to jump out, weapons blazing as they sought to rip him apart.

It must have gone over their heads, though, as Jack began to laugh. "You have to admit, there's something funny about hearing a ghost say that."

"Half-ghost." Jazz interjected as a reminder.

Danny appreciated her effort. He wasn't sure why it stung hearing his parents refer to him as a ghost. He was, factually speaking, a ghost. There was no lie, no real insult. It was simply the truth of the situation. Yet, hearing it spoken by his parents was off-putting in a way he couldn't place.

His mom's smile faltered at Jazz's words. She looked over at her son and gave him a small nod, "Of course, dear. That's what your father meant to say. Right, Jack?"

"Of course, Madds!" He responded with the level of enthusiasm on Jack Fenton could achieve.

Danny was just about to crack a smile at that when a familiar whisp of blue smoke left his lefts. "Oh, crud."

His parents looked at him in confusion, but Jazz knew what was going on. She dug a set of Fenton phones out of her pocket and threw one to him. "Go," she said. "If you need backup, just let me know. I'll call Sam and Tucker for you."

"Thanks," he said quickly, darting out of the room with one last look over his shoulder.

His parents were baffled. What exactly had just happened? Why was Danny in such a hurry to leave and where was he going? Why didn't Jazz seem even the slightest bit surprised by the events that had just unfolded in front of them?

Jazz took in their expressions and sighed heavily. "He went off to fight a ghost. He'll be back soon. He always is."

"GHOST!" Jack yelled, leaping to his feet.

"Oh, for the love of…"

"How does he know?" Maddie asked, still not feeling satisfied with the answer. "None our ecto-scanners went off. There shouldn't be any ghost activity that they don't track."

She'd spent many hours laboring over the inventions to ensure that they would know of any coming threat as soon as possible. There was no way that her calculations could be wrong. She was sure of it.

"Well, for one, Danny is a ghost. He has a ghost sense, which tells him when a ghost is near." Jazz explained, placing one of the Fenton phones in her ear. "For another, I disabled all the scanners."

"YOU WHAT!?" Maddie couldn't believe what she was hearing. Why would her own daughter sabotage her work?

Jazz was barely paying attention, instead she had moved over to the window and was squinting out of it at something in the distance. "I was protecting Danny. The alarm would be going off constantly with him living here."

That shut Maddie down. Just how many precautions had Jazz gone through to protect her brother, and how many of them had gone on under her very nose.

Jazz had a hand pressed over her other ear, focused on whatever she was hearing through the Fenton phone. "Again?" She asked.

There was a pause, and Maddie could have sworn she heard the muffled sound of an ectoblast.

"Well, hurry up and get back here. It's almost time for game night," her daughter said. "The lunch lady shouldn't take you more than a half hour tops. Which reminds me...I'll put in the takeout order. What are you in the mood for?"

Another pause. Muffled grunts. A scream? Maddie couldn't be sure.

Her parental instincts were suddenly on overdrive and she wanted to race to the RV and protect her son. She grabbed her keys from their spot on the table before she felt a hand restraining her arm.

Jazz shook her head at her mother. She held up a finger as if to say, 'wait one minute,' before returning to her conversation with Danny.

"Sesame chicken? Got it. I'll put the order in. See you soon, little brother." With that, Jazz removed the ear piece and turned her attention to her mother.

"I should go help your brother," Maddie said, confused by her daughter's reluctance to let her go. "It sounded like he was really getting hurt."

Jazz's eyes filled with something unexpected: pity. "Mom, this is a daily thing for him. How many times have you seen Phantom take a beating?"

Constantly, Maddie recalled. It seemed nearly every time she saw the ghost he was locked in a gruesome battle. The thought had never really concerned her before, but now she found it sent a chill down her spine.

"And how often have you noticed Danny having severe injuries?" Jazz continued. "He heals incredibly fast and he's good at what he me, when he gets back he'll be fine. If you go out there and distract him, he could slip up and get hurt way worse. You gotta stay here, okay?"

At this, Maddie nodded. She didn't want to be a liability. She would have to trust that her son would be okay, but that didn't mean she was okay with sitting on the sidelines. It would never be okay.

Jazz was already on the phone with the local Chinese restaurant, attention shifted away from her parents. Maddie's hands tightened on the keys once more as she debated slipping out the door. She wouldn't get too close to the fight that Phantom would see her - just close enough that she could see him and help if necessary.

She was about to walk out the door, when it swung open and her very human son slipped through. It had been almost two days since she'd seen him like this, and she couldn't help the rush of relief at the sight. She realized now that she had been missing her son all this time, even though he'd been with through it all. It was an odd revelation.

"Hi, Mom." He greeted, brushing past her and heading for the stairs to the lab.

In that moment, part of her desperately yearned to hear from this Danny, _her_ Danny, that he had spent the weekend at Sam's and forgotten to call. Deep in her heart she wanted to hear that this was all a misunderstanding. That her son and the ghost boy were not one and the same.

Yet, she couldn't fool herself. She saw the way he skirted around her, clearly on edge. She saw the Fenton thermos clutched in his hand, containing whichever foe he had just fought. She couldn't ignore the remnants of a split lip that had recently leaked ectoplasm. But she wished she could.

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 **I apologize for any spelling errors. I do these chapters all in one take, without reading them back. Let me know what you think!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

She hung by the door to the lab, anxiously waiting for the sound of his footsteps running up. What she wasn't expecting, was to hear the thud of footsteps coming _down_ the stairs from the second story.

Confused, she watched her now ghostly son come around the landing, now dressed in a pair of grey sweats and carrying a wadded up pair of jeans. Hadn't he just been down in the…

Oh.

Something clicked in her mind. In the course of the time that she had been waiting by the door, Danny had flown intangibly through their home and to his room. Her son. Flying. Intangibly. Maddie Fenton wasn't much of a drinker, but she suddenly felt like she needed a drink.

"I got ectoplasm all over these, so I'm gonna throw them in the wash," he said as he noticed her attention.

"Is it...yours?" She was surprised when her voice came out as a whisper. Her world had gotten a whole lot weirder. Ectoplasm was no longer just ectoplasm. It was blood.

Now it was Danny's turn to be caught off guard. "Huh?" He asked in surprise before regaining his composure. "No, not all of it."

She followed him down the hall to the laundry room, trying to find the right words. "Do you need first aid?"

Danny ran his hands through his bright, white hair and let out a little nervous laughter. "I'm fine, mom," he said, waving her off. He dumped the jeans in the washing machine and within seconds had the machine up and running.

Funny, last time she'd asked him to do the laundry, he'd barely been able to turn the machine on.

 _He must do this a lot._ She didn't like that thought. How many times had he crept into the laundry at night to wash ecto- _blood_ stains out of his clothes? The thought of him doing it once was appalling. The thought of it being a regular occurrence was terrifying.

He studied her, or rather the fact that she was blocking the door frame, with unease. "Let's go pick out some games, the food should be here soon," he suggested.

"Daniel. James. Fenton."

He froze, knowing his full name was never a good sign. However, hearing his full name in his ghost form was strangely satisfying. He felt validated in some way that he couldn't place, and shot his mom a genuine smile.

It wasn't the reaction she'd been expecting, but couldn't complain. She hadn't seen him smile like in quite some time and it was a welcome sight, even if it was on this strangely inhuman face.

She slowly held out her arms, and he accepted the hug after a moment's hesitation. This time, she was ready for the dead chill and she successfully fought the reflex to jerk away from the cold skin.

"Thanks, Mom."

Maddie was going to say something back, but the moment was shattered by the doorbell ringing. The delivery driver had arrived.

Danny grabbed an old baseball hat off the counter top and pulled it low over his face as he exited the room. He ducked into the kitchen right as Jazz opened the door, letting out a sigh of relief that he hadn't been spotted.

He heard footfalls behind him and was surprised to see that it was his father who had followed him. Jack was carrying a pile of game boxes balanced precariously on top of each other, neck craned around the mess to avoid collisions.

Seeing Danny he grinned and dropped the boxes on the kitchen table. About half of the boxes remained where he put them, and the rest slid to floor, falling open as they did so.

"Oops."

Danny couldn't remember the last time his family had all gotten together to plan a board game. It had been at least several years, he knew that much, but he couldn't pin down a specific memory. It was nice, the four them sprawled out on the ground in the living room, eating takeout while they played mindless board games.

Things were going smoothly, until Jazz screwed him over in the final round. He shot her a look, and was surprised when it elicited a gasp from his father.

"What?" He asked, suddenly wary.

Jazz shrugged. "Guess they haven't seen the 'scary eyes' yet." She did overdramatic air quotes when she described it. She had never been good at being subtle.

That would explain it. He knew that when he got agitated in ghost form, his green eyes would glow brighter and more intensely. Tucker always claimed it was _awesome,_ but Danny had never witnessed it himself so he wasn't sure he wanted to take the techno-geek's word for it.

"Sorry," he started to say before his mother cut him off.

"No need to apologize, sweetie. You didn't do anything wrong."

The game resumed, this time in silence. Danny was careful to keep his emotions in check, and for the millionth time considered giving up on Jazz's plan. Yet, he couldn't get past the small victories he'd already won with his parents. Not to mention, it felt _good_ to be Phantom and not fighting for his afterlife.

Jack won the game, much to the surprise of the rest of the family. Jazz attributed it to 'sheer dumb luck,' before making a suggestion. "How about a more Fenton style game?"

Danny wasn't sure he liked the sound of that.

His parents, however, loved the sound of that. "Yes!" Jack immediately responded, while Maddie nodded her support.

Jazz suggested a round of target practice in the lab. "After all," she said. "Don't you wanna know who's the best shot in the family?"

It was an intriguing idea, and one his parents couldn't refuse. Danny had no doubt his mother would would be victorious over the others. His dad was a great inventor, but a terrible shot. And Jazz? He didn't trust her with the thermos, much less anything that could do actual damage. It had been a while since he'd fired an ecto gun, so he wasn't sure where he'd fit into the ranks either.

Being in the lab with his parents as Phantom was immediately overwhelming. He found himself hyper aware of every device that could hurt him within a 10 foot range. He tried not to let it show on his face as he carefully distanced himself from the larger weapons.

Jazz fired up the training program that he used to test his powers with Sam and Tucker. Cutouts of ghosts popped out of the wall, ceiling and floor at various speeds and locations.

Jack, as predicted, let out a stream of wild shots that barely singed a single target. He did manage to hit the ghost gabber, much to Danny's delight.

Jazz, being a perfectionist, spent what felt like eons positioning the ecto-gun before taking a shot. She managed to nick a few of the targets, but due to her slow preparation, half the targets were gone before she fired her first shot.

Maddie was an excellent shot, and she made it clear why she had that reputation. Throwing in a series of flips, lunges and jumps, she managed to hit three targets right in the bullseye. She missed a few of the faster targets, but overall had an impressive display.

Suddenly, all eyes were on him. "So," he said. "Guess it's my turn. Pass me the gun?"

Jazz shook her head. "Absolutely not," she took the gun from Maddie and put it away. "You don't need a gun. You practically have two built into your hands."

Danny froze. It was true, ecto-blasts were much more natural for him, and he was sure to a great shot with them, but he felt weird using the powers in front of his parents. What if it was the last straw, the moment where they realized how much of a freak he was?

He shook the thoughts away, looking up at the three expectant faces watching his every move. His family had stuck with him thus far, why not take the risk? After all, this was something he was _good_ at. Surely that had to count for something.

"Ready?" Jazz asked.

"Ready."

He powered up his right fist, feeling the familiar surge of power racing down his arm and to his fingertips. The heat of the ecto energy was comforting and, as usual, felt almost like living electricity.

His dad watched with uncontained excitement, and he couldn't read his mother's mixed expression. Jazz gave him a reassuring nod before pulling the lever that let loose the targets.

"Get 'em, Danny boy!" His dad, exclaimed as the first target popped up.

Not only did Danny hit every target spot on, he nearly incinerated several as he took out all the stress from the weekend on the dummies. Soon the air smelled like smoke and ectoplasmic energy.

It wasn't until the haze started to clear that he turned to see his family's reaction.

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	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

His parents were afraid of him. Or, at least afraid of the power that he possessed. That much was abundantly clear from just taking in their facial expressions.

He let the ectoblast die around his fingers, fizzling out to nothing. _Way to win them over, Fenton._ He thought. Danny doubted a moment of calculated destruction wasn't going to fix the whole 'ghosts are evil' thing in their minds.

Jazz was oblivious, walking over to him with a beaming smiling as she offered him a high-five. "Way to go, little brother. I think that's a new record for you!"

Record. Right. He'd forgotten that Jazz liked to keep track of his powers and their progress down to the exact numbers of targets he'd hit. For him, practice was more about blowing off steam than improving on some score.

"Show us more!" He hadn't expected his father to chime in then, and especially not with that response.

Show them more. More what? Destruction? He'd rather not.

Jack was nothing if not persistent, "What other powers have you got?"

Danny was becoming increasingly conscious of his setting. Seeing the wall of anti-ghost weaponry just behind his father's beaming face, coupled with the dissection equipment to left left Danny feeling a bit panicked. Was this what it felt like to be lab rat in a cage?

Suddenly, the lab felt dangerous.

He swallowed, hyperaware of his heart echoing slowly in his own ears. He looked from face to face of the family members around him and the air had suddenly started to seem a little too warm and….

The next thing Danny knew, he was on his back. He blinked several times, clearing up the spots in his vision and taking in his surroundings.

The lab.

Was he...on the _dissection_ _table_? As much as he fervently wished he could deny it, the feel of the cold metal spoke volumes.

He let out a startled scream, lashing out. To his relief, there were no straps holding him down. The relief was short lived as he found himself teetering off balance and falling to the floor. He was then aware of a woman's gloved hand entering his vision.

He took it, his own hand shaking as he straightened. He met his mother's eyes uncertainly, only to find what appeared to be genuine worry looking back at him.

"Are you okay?" She asked, though it was clear to them both that this was a dumb question to ask in the situation. She couldn't find a more appropriate one, so she had settled for the standard inquiry. "You just sort of fainted a minute ago."

Danny's throat felt like sandpaper. "I…" It was so hard to find the words to ask. "The exam table…?"

She frowned at him, forehead creasing in confusion. What about the exam table had spooked him so much? Then reality seemed to hit Maddie like a load of bricks. Her mouth dropped open wide and she felt her own knees buckle.

"You didn't think…?" She couldn't bring herself to ask.

Danny's radioactive green eyes snapped up at that, suddenly hardening. "Of course I thought that. Why the hell would I think anything different? You guys are ghost hunters. And, hello, I'm a ghost!" His voice kept rising until it finally broke on the last word.

Jazz, who had been standing behind her mother until this point, weaved her way between the two of them to wrap Danny in a tight embrace. "I'm so sorry, little brother. We wanted to take you upstairs, but you're not supposed to move someone when they hit their head. I shouldn't have let you wake up there, though."

Maddie's mind finally processed the extent of what had just happened. She bit her lip, unsure of whether approaching Danny would help or harm the situation. The maternal side of her refused to let her sit back, and soon she found herself beside Jazz, wrapping her arms tight around Danny. This time she didn't even think twice about the chill of his skin.

Danny stiffened, but did not pull back. "Where's Dad?" He finally asked, realizing the eldest Fenton was no longer in the lab.

"Coming!" Jack's booming voice echoed from the top of the stairs. As his father came into sight, Danny took in the pillow stuffed under his arm, and the blankets piled in his hands. "Guess we don't need these after all!"

Danny let out a breath he didn't realize he was holding. After all, as Phantom he didn't need to breathe. It was more of a reflex than anything else and it surprised him.

So his parents really hadn't been planning to experiment on him. They had even thought to bring a pillow and blankets to make the exam table more comfortable as he recovered. They had been trying to _help_.

He finally relaxed into his mother's hug and shot his father a small smile, peering out from behind white bangs.

"Now look at me, sweetie." His mother said. When he did as he was asked, she spoke very slowly and deliberately. "We would _never_ do that to you. Do you understand? Never." The intensity in her gaze was enough for him to believe her words.

Jack looked confused by the exchange, but did not ask questions. Jazz, however, beamed at her mother, visibly pleased by her words.

"Let's go back upstairs," she suggested, leading the family to the staircase. "I think Danny's a little overwhelmed with all the anti-ghost equipment down here."

 _Subtle._ Danny thought, though he wasn't surprised. Jazz took after their father in that respect. Subtle as a school bus fire.

He hadn't realized just how shaken up he was until he tried to step onto the first step and instead stepped through it. He let out a yelp, throwing his arms out to steady himself.

In an instant, his parents had each grabbed one arm and lifted him up. His leg became tangible once more and he carefully lowered it onto the step. His cheeks turned pink as embarrassment coursed through his veins.

Uncontrolled intangibility was such an amateur problem. He hadn't dealt with it in years, and was mortified that it had returned once more. Granted, he had to admit it made sense. He hadn't felt this out of his element since he'd first gotten his ghost powers. They'd been most unpredictable when he hadn't yet accepted his status as a halfa.

He was sure Jazz would have a field day with her psychological theories if he told her that. Which was exactly why he never would.

With the help of his parents steadying him, he was soon back in the living room. He slumped back into one of the chairs, exhausted from the whole ordeal.

At that moment, his phone buzzed in his pocket. He fumbled to retrieve it, muttering as it slipped through his hands. This unstable intangibility was going to drive him nuts. All the while, he was aware of his whole family watching with something akin to pity.

Finally, his hands returned to normal and he checked the message. Tucker wanted to know if he'd done Lancer's assignment yet. Danny almost laughed. Homework seemed so trivial in comparison to everything else happening in his life right now. Yet, it was evidence that the world had actually kept spinning since he'd lost his secret to his family.

He typed back a quick response, reminding his best friend just who he was dealing with. Danny Fenton hadn't finished an assignment for Lancer's class since before the accident. It was a blessing if he even started them in the first place.

School.

He couldn't believe he had to go back in the morning. The idea of going through the motions after his entire reality had been knocked off course was insane. This wouldn't be the first time, though. After the accident, going back to school had been almost impossible. If he could survive that and act like nothing was wrong, he could survive anything. Right?

He excused himself, getting to his feet and walking over to the stairs. All the while, he felt his parents eyes glued to him. He felt the heat of their gazes as he fell through the stairs and landed on the floor of the lab.

He cursed and started back up the stairs. This was going to be a long night.

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 **Please review. Once again, these are written in one go without a read through before posting so I apologize for any spelling errors.**


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Danny left early for school, phasing through the wall of his room to avoid interacting with the family. While he appreciated the progress that they were making, he needed a little bit of space. He hadn't really had much alone time all week.

He flew to school, slowly, knowing that no matter how many detours he added in, he'd be setting a personal record for getting to school early. If only Lancer would take those minutes and apply them to every day he'd been late. That would be something.

He hadn't even seen the Box Ghost yet, which was enough to make the early morning worth it. As easy as he was to defeat, Danny had a headache just thinking about the ghost's voice screaming in his ear once more.

He landed behind the school dumpsters and changed back before reluctantly trudging towards Casper High. There was only one care in the parking lot at this hours, which Danny identified as belonging to the school nurse.

He sat on the front steps, retrieving his cellphone from his backpack and checking his messages. Sam had commented in their group chat, saying that she would late to class because of doctor's appointment. Tucker had replied with his typical hospital-phobia monologue. Danny couldn't help but smile at the familiarity of the interaction. At least some things never changed.

Jazz had sent him a few messages, but he'd expected as much. She had first wondered if he was off fighting a ghost, then she wanted to know if he needed a ride to school, and finally she'd said that there was no point in running away from his problems. He rolled his eyes at the last one.

He could try.

School was uneventful, and that filled Danny with anxiety. He couldn't remember the last time he hadn't had to run out of at least one class to fight a ghost. Yet, today his ghost sense didn't go off at all during the school day.

He went through the motions of high school just liked every other kid in the school. It was so mundane that he felt like he was in some sort of dream world and had to convince himself that the whole day was not just a creation of Nocturne.

Tucker joked that the ghosts were giving him a day off. Sam warned him to be careful, because she found the whole thing suspicious.

Danny didn't know what to think. He felt antsy, and honestly a little annoyed. He could really use some misplaced aggression right about now. He never thought he'd long to see the Box Ghost, but right now it would be a welcome distraction.

As he was walking out the front door with Sam and Tucker, it finally hit. That feeling like ice clawing itself up his throat came rushing back right before escaping from his lips as a mist. He could feel his ghost sense a million times, but that sensation would never be something he could get used to.

"Go on," Sam said, giving him a knowing look. "We'll catch up with you later."

Tucker nodded, clapping his friend on the shoulder. "Just let us know if you need us, we're gonna head to Sam's place."

The two of them cast a final look at their friend before slowly making their way away from the campus.

Danny watched their figures retreat into the distance before casting a quick look around. Once he was satisfied that there were no witnesses or cameras, he summoned the white rings to transform him into Phantom.

In a second, he took to the sky.

Jack and Maddie had been having an eventful day. When they'd woken up and discovered their son was not in his room, they'd been worried. However, Jazz had convinced them that he was probably off ghost fighting and would find his own way to school. While this was still a worrisome thought, at least he wasn't missing.

Jazz assured them that if they kept the news on during the day, they'd see him fight several times. They'd been surprised to hear that he had to duck out of classes so frequently to fight ghosts, and that this was the reason for his recent academic plummet.

When Jazz left, the Fenton parents sat down to discuss the revelation. It wasn't long before they decided to spend the day in the field rather than the lab.

"Let's give him a day off," said Maddie. "Maybe that's the first step to earning his trust."

Jack couldn't argue with her logic, so he quickly located the keys to the Fenton GAV. They were out the door before they could give it a second thought.

They hadn't realized how active ghosts were during the day. Maddie was certain that this was because Jazz had disabled their scanners. If they'd known there were so many threats in the daylight, they would have spent less time tinkering with gadgets and more time patrolling the streets.

It was easily the most productive ghost hunting day that they had ever had. They'd managed to catch a few ghost octopi, a vulture and a very loud ghost who kept professing his love of boxes. Maddie had found him particularly vexing.

It hadn't been easy, she would admit. They were a little rusty on their field skills, and she was endlessly grateful to have her partner looking out for her. She didn't think they'd have been able to take down any of the ghosts without teamwork.

She was so proud of her husband. Jack's aim had been steadily improving over the course of the day, and he'd even managed to singe an octopus! She'd beamed at him and sucked the ghost into a thermos before they'd continued on.

Their hunt had taken the better part of the day, and before she knew it, it was a three o'clock. "Jack," she called.

He was busy trying to parallel park the GAV, and hitting more than a few cars in the process. She tried not to flinch when she thought about the potential lawsuits. Jack was not one for delicate matters.

At her voice, he looked up and gave her a small wave. She could tell by his expression that he was too far out of hearing range.

She sighed, crossing the street to knock on the window. He rolled it down immediately.

"Hey, Madds!"

"Jack," she said. "Danny should be out of school by now, don't you think we should head back so we're there when he gets home?"

Her husband nodded his agreement before violently twisting the steering wheel and plowing over a few cars to return to the middle of the street.

Maddie face-palmed at the destruction, shaking her head before yanking open the passenger door and climbing inside.

They drove in comfortable silence, each lost in the thoughts of the day. It had been a great bonding time for the two of them, and Maddie was so glad for it. When they worked in the lab, it was calculations and individual projects. Out in the field, they'd been teammates. They'd had a single mission and it had felt so good to be focused on something together.

Before long, an explosion off the front of the GAV had Jack screeching to a stop. The Fentons took in the scene above them, eyes widening at the familiar black and white streak zipping across the sky.

Phantom and a green, mechanical ghost were locked in battle. It had been so long since Maddie had seen the iconic jumpsuit with the DP logo that she had to do a double take.

The mechanical ghost was not messing around. Every few moments, he fired a new weapon at his opponent. Phantom dodged them all, though several only by the smallest of margins. Then he took the offensive, sending a set of bright green blasts at his enemy.

Maddie quickly realized this was a much more dangerous fight than anything she and Jack had been up against during the day. She shot Jack a concerned look, only to see that he had initiated the firing application of the GAV. The wheel had transformed into a set of controls and triggers as her husband took aim.

"Careful!" She cried, "You might hit Danny!"

At this, he looked over at her with an overwhelmed expression. "Take the shot," he said to her as he clambered into the back of the vehicle, freeing up the drivers seat.

She hesitated briefly before leaping into position. She positioned the gun, aiming straight for the mechanical ghost's chest. It was tricky, as he and Phantom danced around one another in the sky, trading blows.

She tightened her finger on the trigger and with a small yell, pressed down. She could hear the ecto gun charge up above her, and the dull whine as it released its shot.

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